Embossing machine



y 14, 1 53 Q a. c. BRAlN AR D TAL 2,645,322

nunossmc u AcHinE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed SeptLlS, 1949 Inventors GeorgeCQB'ra/marc/ John Graver July 14, 1953 G. c. BRAINARD ET AL mossmcMACHINE v 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 15 1949 Jfzvznfora:

6 cB 'a/nard Geogg Jobnj'f Graver flier-neg;

Patented July 14,1953

EMBOSSING MACHINE George C. Brainard, Cleveland, and John H. Gruver,Cleveland Heights, Ohio, assignors to Addressograph-MultigraphCorporation, Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware ApplicationSeptember 13, 1949, Serial No. 115,394

Claims.

This invention relates to embossed printing plates and particularly tothe embossing of type characters on printing plates that are made from aplastic material. 7

Printing plates having embossed printing characters thereon have beenused in different types of machines, one of which is in the nature of ageneral purpose printing machine through which individual printingdevices, or printing plates embodyihg embossed printing characters arepassed one by one into, then out of a printing station at which one ormore printed impressions maybe made from the printing device. In anotheruse of printing devices of this general class, a printing device isissued to the customer of a department store or the like and i utilizedin making out charge or sales slips when the customer makes a purchaseat the store. In such an instance, the charge plate or token is placedin a specialized printing machine so that the name and address, andpossibly other data, may be printed from the charge plate onto a salesslip.

' Printing plates adapted for the above described uses have in the pastbeen made primarily from an embossable metal, and it is an object of thepresent invention to enable such printing plates to be easily andconveniently made from a moldable plastic material. It is recognizedthat printplates have been made from moldable plastic material, but, asheretofore accomplished, this has been done by means of a relativelycomplicated character so that the use of plastic moldable material inprinting plates has been confined to those businesses or plants Wherethe complicated operations could be performed. Printing plates of thecharacter hereinabove described must, however, be of such a characterthat the embossing operations may be performed by apparatus that isrelatively simple, and to so arrange a-printing plate as to enable thisto be accomplished is another and more specific object of the invention.

Other and further objects of the present invention are to afford aprinting plate made from a plastic material in such a way that theprinting plate is not only adapted for formation by simple and economicprocesses of extrusion, but is also adapted for cooperation withcharacter forming dies in such a way that accuracy of formation of theembossed characters is assured. Further and related objects are toenable the displacement of heated plastic material of such printingplates to be readily and easily controlled in the character formingoperations, thereby to; avoid the formation vof undesired projections inthe prints plane of e p t g p ate, and to enable 2 character forming andblank-forming operations to be readily. and easily performed.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent fromthe following description and claims and are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, which, byway of illustration, show a preferredembodiment and the principles thereof and what we now consider to be thebest mode in which we have contemplated applying those principles. Otherembodiments of the invention embodying the same or equivalent principlesmay be used and structural changes may be made as desired by thoseskilled in the art without departing from the present invention and thepurview of the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a side elevational view, taken partially in vertical section,of an embossing machine embodying the features of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the: machine shown in Fig. 1; V

Fig. 3 is a front elevational view of a portion of the machine;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially along the line4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a face View of a plastic printing plate embodying the featuresof the invention, the view being at an enlarged scale;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 6-6 ofFig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view through the portion of theprinting plate in which character and blanking impressions have'beenmade, the view being taken substantially along the line 'l--! of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a cross sectional view taken vertically through the blankingspace along the line 8-8 V of Fig. 5;

Fig 9 is a vertical sectional View taken substantially along the line9-9 and showing the cross sectional form of one of theprinting'characters;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the operative face ofone of the character forming die heads;

Fig. 11 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line Il-H ofFig. 10;

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the operativeface of the blanking die; and

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along theline 13-43 of Fig. 12.

For purposes of disclosure, the invention .is herein illustrated asembodied in an embossing machine 20 and a'plastic printing plate P thatis" adapted to be embossed through the use of 7 known commercialconstruction. This typewriter that has been employed in the productionof the present embossing machine is sold commercially under the trademark Electromatic and is manufactured and sold by International BusinessMachines Corporation of New York city, This typewriter embodies akeyboard K located at the forward side of a main frame F, and undercontrol of the individual keys of the keyboard K, any selected one of aplurality of type bars 22 may be actuated about the pivotal mounting 23so as to move the type bar upwardly and rearwardly toward an effectiveposition.

indicated at 22' in Fig. 1 of the drawings. In theltypewriter that hasthus been utilized in the production of the present machine, suchmovement of the type bar is normally effective to bring a conventionaltype head into cooperation with conventional ribbon mechanism and apaper supporting platen that are mounted on a transverse carriagemechanism of well-known construction, apart of such carriage mechanism,the platen, and the ribbon mechanism having been removed in the presentmachine and having been replaced by other mechanism, as will hereinafterbe described. The conventional type heads carried normally at the endsof the respective type bars 22 have, in the present instance, beenreplaced byspecial type heads 25 that are in the nature of embossingdies, whereby embossed type characters 26, Figs. 5, 7, 8 and 9, may beformed on the forward face of the plastic printing plate P.

The present machine provides for shiftable mounting of the plasticprinting plate P so that the embossed type characters can be formedsuccessively in the desired relationship on the surface of the printingplate, and to enable this to be accomplished, a supplementallongitudinally shiftable carriage C is mounted on the frame F in themanner that is specifically described in the'patent to John H. Gruver,No. 2,605,878, and reference may be had to such patent for details ofsuch mounting of the carriage C. For present purposes, it is sufficientto point out that the carriage C is mounted and guided for movementparallel to the path of movement of the usual carriage 32 of thetypewriter, and a connection.

is afforded therebetween so that the carriage C is actuated throughcharacter spacing movements in a direction opposite to the direction ofcharaoter'spacing movements of the usual carriage 32. This not onlyenables reverse-reading embossed type characters to be formed in theproper relation on the printing plate P, but also enables the usualcarriage control mechanism of the typewriter to function in its normalmanner and relationship.

Theembossing machine 20 has a cross slide 45 mounted for line spacingmovement in an upward and rearward direction along guide rods 46 thatare afforded on the carriage C, and means are afforded forcontrolling'line spacing and re- .turn movement of the cross slide 45 inthe same manner as in the aforesaid copending Gruver application.

Under and in accordance with the present invention, the embossed typecharacters 26 are formed on the printing plate P merely through theapplication of forming pressure due to the upward and rearward blow ofthe type head 25, and to enable this to be accomplished, the type 4heads 25 and the printing plate P are heated by means included withinthe machine; With respect to the heating of the printing plate P,meansare afforded on the cross slide 45, and 7 thus, as shown in Figs. 1and 4, the cross slide,

35 has an upwardly and rearwardly extending mounting block 50 fixedthereto, this block 50 preferably being made from aluminum'and affordinga forward surface against which a print- 7 ing plate P may rest. Theprinting plate P is held in such position by spring retaining members 5|that are fixed on the forward face of the block 50 near the end edgesthereof, and a suitable stop 518 is afforded on the carriage C at thelower ends of the block 50 for limiting the vertical movement of such aplate P. This locates the printing plate P at a predetermined positionon the forward face of the block 50, and when the printing plate is inthis position it is subjected to a heating operation so as to maintainthe material of the printing plate P at a workable temperature, as willhereinafter be described in detail. To enable this to be accomplished,the block has heating means and heat control means associated therewith,and in the present instance such heating means are afforded by a pair ofelongated electrical heating elements that are inserted longitudinallyinto the block 50 at spaced points, there being suitable bores formed inthe block 56 to enable this to be done. The heating action of theelectric heaters 55 is governed by a thermostat 55 that is mountedwithin a longitudinal bore 5'! formed in the block 50 midway between thetwo heaters 55.

The type heads 25 are arranged to beconstantly heated by affordingheating means in association with such type heads 25 in their normallyretracted or rest positions. To this end, a block 60 of a metal such asaluminum is formed with an upwardly and rearwardly facing grooveBl'therein to receive the arcuate row of type heads 25, and a pluralityof slots 62 are formed transversely with respect to the slot 6] toafford spaces into and through which the type bars or arms 22 mayextend. The block 60 is arranged to be heated to a predeterminedtemperature by means such as a pair of electrical heating elements 65that are extended into the block 50 at spaced points as shown in Fig. 1,and the heating action of the heaters 65 is controlled by a thermostat56 thatis extended into a bore Bl formed in the block 50.

In attaining accurate formation of the embossed characters 25, We havefound that there is a definite cooperation between the forming surfacesof the type heads 25 and the formation or shape of the forward face ofthe plastic plate P. Thus, as shown' in Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings,the plastic plate P is formed as an extrusion which affords anintermediate and relatively thin body portion I0 having a fiat rear faceand with relatively thick reinforcing edges II that project from suchrear face of the plate P. Along the forward face of the plate P, and inpositions that are to be occupied by the lines of type charactersembossed on the plate, upstanding parallel ribs 72 are formed in such away as to define intermediate grooves 13 located between the ribs I2.The upper faces of the ribs 12 are'rounded on a relatively largetransverse radius as indicated at 12R in Fig. 6 of "the drawings, andthrough this formation of the acters 26 in an advantageous manner, aswill hereinafter be described.

The type heads 25 are in most instances arranged to have die cavities inthe forward or operative ends thereof for the formation of various typecharacters on the plate P; but one'type head that affords a blankingdie-25B is provided. as shown in Figs. 12 and 13, for reducing theeffective height of the rib 12 at those positions where there is to be ablank space on the printed copy. Such blank space formation is indicatedat 2613 in Figs. 5, 7 and 8, and the specific formation of the type head253, which attains this blanking action on the rib 12, will be describedhereinafter. g

As will be evident in Figs. 10 and 11 of the drawings, each type head 25has arelatively flat forward face 15, and in this flat face, a diecavity I 6 is formed that is complemental to the desired form of thetype character that is to be produced by the particular type head 25.The type head 25 is also provided with a projecting angular blade TI,disposed along what may be termed the leading edge of the type head 25,that is, the edge that is disposed to the right of the type head 25 asshown in Fig. 10, or the edge that is disposed to the, left of the typecharacter when such type character is viewed in the relationship shownin Fig. 5. This blade 11 is so arranged that it extends in an up anddown direction across the ridge 12 of the printing plate, and this bladeserves to cut downwardly into the ridge 12 just ahead of the place wherethe type character 26 is to be embossed. It has been found that thisprevents undesired flow or spattering of the material at the edge of thetype character where the material of the plate has not previously beenworked. The arrangement of the blade 11 on the type head 25 is such thatwith many characters or letters, the angular surface of the blade 1'!that is adjacent to the die recess 16 extends downwardly into the dierecess '16 so as to form the adjacent edge of the die recess, asindicated at "D in Figs. 10 and 11 of the drawings.

The blanking die 25B is also provided with a blade 11 along thecorresponding leading edge of the type head, as shown in Fig. 12, andthis type head also has a forward face 15, as hereinabove described. Theblanking die head 25B, however, is formed with a longitudinal centralridge 80 that is relatively sharp, as shown in Fig. 13 of the drawings,and this ridge is so located that when the head 25B strikes the ridge 12in a blanking operation, the ridge 80 will be parallel to and disposedcentrally of the rib 72. This sharp edge afforded at 80 serves todisplace the material at the highest point of the rib 12 so as to forcethe same in opposite directions toward the edge of the rib 12, and suchmaterial flows into die cavities BI formed above and below the sharpedge 80, as will be evident in Fig. 13, and it is through such structurethat the height of the rib I2 is materially reduced, as shown in Fig. 8of the drawings.

In attaining proper formation of the embossed type characters, it isessential under the present invention to maintain proper and relatedtemperatures in the dies 25 and the anvil 50, and such temperatures are,of course, related in some respects to the particular type and characterof the thermoplastic material that is employed in the printing plates P.While different plastic materials may be utilized, we have found thatcellulose acetate is well suited to such use, since 6, it is adapted forformation by processes of extrusion and is readily formed while at thesame time possessing adequate compressive strength to resist deformationwhen used in a printing operation.

When the printing plate P is made from cellulose acetate, it has beenfound that the platesupporting anvil 50 may behe'ated to a temperaturewithin the range of 380 to 500 F., while the dies or dieheads 25 may beheated to a temperature of from to: F. It is found that this temperaturerelationship may be reversed or, in other words, the die heads may beheated to a temperature of between 380 to 500 While the anvil'may bemaintained at a temperature of from'lOO to 160 F. When temperatures suchas the foregoing are afforded, it is found that the type characters maybe embossed upon the printing plate P without undesired flow of thematerial, and the material retains its formed shape after the pressureof the embossing die head has been removed.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that the presentinvention enables embossed type characters to be formed upon plasticprinting plates by a succession of forming operations that may beaccurately controlled so as to attain properly formed embossed typecharacters. It will also be apparent that the machine for forming theseembossed characters may be operated by anyone who can operate anordinary typewriter. In addition to the foregoing, it will be evidentthat the present invention affords a plastic printing plate that isparticularly adapted for the formation of embossed type charactersthereon, and it will be clear that the ribbed formation of the plateimparts char acteristics of strength to the plate while at the same timecooperating With the forming dies in the production of the desiredembossed type characters. 1

Thus, while We have illustrated and described the preferred embodimentof our invention, it is to be understood that this is capable ofvariation and modification, and we therefore do not wish to be limitedto the precise details set forth, but desire to avail ourselves of suchchanges and alterations as fall within the purview of the followingclaims. 1

We claim:

1. In an embossing machine for forming embossed type characters one byone on a plastic printing plate, a plurality of type heads havingdieoavities formed therein defining the respective type characters thatare to be formed, means supporting said type heads for individualmovementfrom retracted position-Ste operated positions wherein the typehead is disposed in a working position that is the same for each typehead, means including carriage and cross slide means for supporting andvariantly positioning a plastic printing plate opposite said workingposition for cooperation with the die cavity of a type head in suchworking position, a first heating means for heating a plate that is inposition on such cross slide, a second heating means arranged topartially surround all of said type heads While such heads are in saidretracted positions, and control means for said heating means operableto maintain one of said heating means at a temperature within the rangeof 100 to 160 F., and the other of said heating means within the rangeof 380 to 500.F'.

2. In an embossing machine for forming embossed type characters one byone on a plastic printing p1ate,-a plurality of die heads, a pluralityof supporting arms on corresponding ends of which the respective dieheads are fixed, means supporting said arms for individual movement fromretracted positions wherein the die heads are supported side by side ina row to operated positions wherein the die head of an arm in itsoperated position is disposed in a working position that is the same foreach die head, means including carriage and cross slide means forsupporting and variantly positioning a plastic printing plate oppositesaid working position, means for heating a plastic printing plate whileit is in position on said cross slide, and a heater block for said dieheads having a longitudinal groove in which all of said die heads may bepositioned when such die heads are in said retracted positions, saidblock having transverse slots intersecting with said groove and throughwhich said arms may extend into said groove, said die heads having diecavities formed therein defining the respective type characters that areto be formed on such a plate.

3; In an embossing machine for forming embossed type characters one byone on a plastic printing plate, a plurality of die heads, meanssupporting said die heads for individual movement from retractedpositions to operated positions wherein the die head is disposed in aworking position that is the same for each die head, means includingcarriage and cross slide means for supporting and variantly positioninga plastic printing plate opposite said working position,

means 'for heating a plastic printing plate while it is in position onsaid cross slide, means for heating said die heads when such die headsare in said retracted positions, said die heads having die cavitiesformed therein defining the respective type characters that are to beformed on such a plate, and each of said die heads having a bladeextended along the leading side edge thereof to form a vertical groovein a plate just ahead of each embossed character that is formed on theplate. 7

4. In an embossing machine for forming embossed type characters one byone on a plastic printing plate, a plurality of die heads, meanssupporting said die heads for individual movement from retractedpositions to operated positions wherein the die head is disposed in aworking position that is the same for each die head, means includingcarriage and cross slide means for supporting and variantly positioninga plastic printing plate opposite said working position, means forheating a plastic printing plate While it is in position on said crossslide, means for heating said die heads when such die heads are in saidretracted positions, said die heads having die cavities formed thereindefining the respective type characters that are to be formed on such aplate, and each of said die heads having a blade extended along theleading side edge thereof to form a vertical groove in a plate justahead of each embossed character that is formed on the plate, one ofsaid die heads constituting a blanking die having a longitudinal centralridge operable to force plastic material in a, direction parallel tosaid blade of such blanking die. 7

5. In an embossing machine for forming embossed type characters one byone on a plastic printing plate, a plurality of die heads, meanssupporting said die heads for individual movement from retractedpositions to operated positions wherein the die head is disposed in aworking position that is the same for each die head, means includingcarriage and cross slide means for supporting and variantly positioninga plastic printing plate opposite said working position, means forheating a plastic printing plate while it is in position on said crossslide, means for heating said die heads when such die heads are in saidretracted positions, at least one of said die heads constituting ablanking die and having a die cavity therein comprising a centrallongitudinal sharp edge and relatively deep die portions on oppositesides of said edge, and the others of said die heads having die cavitiesformed therein defining the respective type characters that are to beformed on such a plate, and

each of said die heads having a blade extended along the leading sideedge thereof to form a vertical groove in a plate just ahead of eachembossure that is made on the plate by one of such die heads.

GEORGE C. BRAINARD. JOHN H. GRUVER.

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